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Trump sends shockwaves through DC as top Republican ‘Deep State’ lawmaker is knifed for close ties to CIA

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Rep. Mike Turner, former chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, R-Ohio, during a press conference by members of the congressional delegation on February 9, 2024 in kyiv, Ukraine. President Johnson removed Turner from the intelligence committee on Wednesday

Donald Trump has sent shockwaves through DC after a top House Republican tasked with overseeing the CIA and FBI was dramatically replaced.

Chairman Mike Johnson surprised lawmakers Wednesday when he announced he will replace House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner.

Turner, 65, who has served as committee chairman since January 2023, was accused by Trump loyalists in the Freedom Caucus of having a ‘sycophantic’ relationship with members of the CIA and FBI.

While Johnson claimed Trump had no direct role in Turner’s stabbing, sources claimed the president-elect personally intervened.

Trump has vowed to “drain the swamp” and is expected to take aim at the intelligence services he says have worked to keep him out of the White House as part of a “deep state” operation.

As part of his MAGA reform, Trump has tapped Tulsi Gabbard to become the new Director of National Intelligence and Kash Patel to lead the FBI.

Both nominations have sparked an establishment backlash over comments Gabbard and Patel have made about their opposition to the “deep state.”

Rep. Mike Turner, former chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, R-Ohio, during a press conference by members of the congressional delegation on February 9, 2024 in kyiv, Ukraine. President Johnson removed Turner from the intelligence committee on Wednesday

Donald Trump has railed against senior members of the intelligence community and commonly refers to them as the

Donald Trump has railed against senior members of the intelligence community and commonly refers to them as the “Deep State.”

The conservative House Freedom Caucus met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago last weekend.

The conservative House Freedom Caucus met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago last weekend.

Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Ark., now Intel’s top Republican and much more aligned with MAGA than Turner, will take over as chairman.

Conservative commentator Rogan O’Handley slammed Turner on X following the announcement: ‘Intel House Chairman Mike Turner has voted for all of Ukraine’s spending bills. Voted to keep Kevin McCarthy as president. He initially voted against censuring Adam Schiff. He voted in favor of raising the debt ceiling. He is a warmongering RINO trying to send $60 billion to Ukraine. He is the Deep State.’

“Republican Intel Chairman of the House of Representatives, ousted yesterday by President Johnson, Mike Turner, is a blind loyalist and a puppet of the US Security State, the CIA and the NSA,” the journalist similarly wrote Glenn Greenwald.

While chairman of the Intel Committee, Turner found himself at times at odds with leadership and with Trump.

The Ohio Republican was one of the strongest advocates for Congress to renew FISA, the controversial tool that helps the FBI and CIA spy on terrorists, last year despite Trump’s demands to let the surveillance tool would expire.

‘Kill FISA, it was used illegally against me and many others. They spied on my campaign!’ Trump posted on social media in April 2024.

The House finally authorized a modified version of FISA after multiple controversial attempts to pass a measure to expand the use of the spying tool.

That renewal came despite reports emerging in 2023 that FISA had been “incorrectly” used 278,000 times to monitor Americans and was also used to track the January 6 defendants and activists of Black Lives Matter.

FISA was notoriously misused by the intelligence community to spy on Trump campaign aide Carter Page during the 2016 election, and later generated claims about the Republican’s ties to Russia, which Democrats used for years to hit credibility of the 45th president.

Turner caused headaches for the House Republican leadership in February 2024 when he sounded the alarm about a

Turner caused headaches for the House Republican leadership in February 2024 when he sounded the alarm about a Russian “national security threat” that was reportedly nuclear weapons in space. President Johnson later had to calm the situation.

Trump has spoken out against the FISA spy tool

Trump has spoken out against the FISA spy tool

Turner also made headlines last year for warning that Russia was developing a “serious new national security threat,” immediately raising alarm bells throughout the Capitol as the press peppered lawmakers with questions about the terrifying development.

Reports emerged at the time indicating that the threat Turner was referring to had to do with Russia’s efforts to place a nuclear weapon in space.

At the time, Turner demanded that President Joe Biden declassify the sinister information so lawmakers could discuss the ramifications.

Republican President Mike Johnson later had to clean up the debacle and reaffirm that “there is no need for public alarm.”

“I’m not at liberty to reveal classified information and I can’t really say much about it, but we just want to assure everyone that we have our hands firmly on the wheel and we’re working on it.” “There is no need to be alarmed,” Johnson said.

Turner released a statement acknowledging the restructuring on Wednesday.

“I am very proud to have served on the House Intelligence Committee and as its chairman,” Turner wrote. “Under my leadership, we restored the integrity of the Committee and returned its mission to its core focus on national security.”

‘The threat from our adversaries is real and requires serious deliberations. As ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, I have been and will continue to be a strong supporter of the military and our national defense.”

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